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James Eugene Carrey (born January 17, 1962,
Newmarket, Ontario) is a Canadian/American actor and comedian. He is
best known for his manic, slapstick performances in comedy films such as
Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994), The Mask (1994), Liar Liar (1997),
and Bruce Almighty (2003). Carrey has also achieved critical and
commercial success in dramatic roles in films such as The Truman Show
(1998) and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004).
* * * *
Starting in
comedy
Carrey dropped out of high school, and
began to work in comedy clubs with an act that included impersonations
of celebrities such as Michael Landon and Jimmy Stewart. In 1979, he
moved to Los Angeles and started working in The Comedy Store, where he
was noticed by comedian Rodney Dangerfield. Dangerfield liked Carrey's
act so much that he signed Carrey up to open Dangerfield's tour
performances.
Carrey began to work occasionally in
television and in small parts in movies, which eventually led to a
friendship with Damon Wayans. When Wayans' brother Keenen was putting
together a sketch comedy show for Fox called In Living Color, Carrey was
hired as a cast member. Carrey's unusual characters and on-screen
behavior caught America's attention.
Film career
Jim Carrey's success on In Living Color led
to a starring role in the comedy Ace Ventura, Pet Detective, which
premiered only months before In Living Color ended. The film was panned
by the critics, and helped earn him a 1994 Golden Raspberry Award
nomination as Worst New Star. The film was a commercial success, as were
two other releases that same year, The Mask and Dumb and Dumber.
The following year Jim Carrey appeared as
The Riddler in Batman Forever and reprised his role as Ace Ventura in
Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls. Both films were successful and earned
Carrey multi-million dollar paychecks.
Carrey made headlines when it was revealed
that for his next film, The Cable Guy, he was paid twenty million
dollars, a record payday for a comedic actor. The attention drawn to his
salary, coupled with negative reviews and the character's dark mood in
contrast to his other performances, all contributed to the film's box
office failure. Jim Carrey quickly rebounded with the successful Liar
Liar, a return to his trademark style.
Despite the regular comedy successes, Jim
Carrey took a chance and a slight paycut to star in The Truman Show
(1998), a change of pace that led to forecasts of an Academy Award
nomination which did not happen, leading Jim Carrey to appear on the
show and joke "it's an honor just to be nominated...oh no."
In 1999 Carrey fought hard and won the role
of comedian Andy Kaufman in Man on the Moon. Several actors including
Edward Norton were interested in the role, but Carrey's audition,
including a performance the bongo drums Kaufman used in his
performances, helped him win the role. Coincidentally, Carrey was born
13 years to the day after Kaufman.
Jim Carrey continues to appear in
successful comedies as well as more dramatic roles. His performance in
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) earned high praise from
critics, who once again incorrectly predicted that Carrey would receive
his first Oscar nomination.
Awards
Carrey has won repeatedly nominations from
the two major foreign press associations, with two Golden Satellite
Award nominations and six nominations for Golden Globe Awards, winning
two of the latter. He has been even more successful with MTV Movie
Awards, with over 20 nominations and awards, some shared (as in the 1995
"Best Kiss" award shared with Lauren Holly). He has also been nominated
three times for Saturn Awards.
He is an inductee of Canada's Walk of Fame.
Personal
life
Carrey was born and grew up in the Toronto
suburb of Newmarket, Ontario. A comedian from an early age, Carrey
mailed his résumé to The Carol Burnett Show when he was 10 years old.
The teachers in Carrey's high school gave him a few minutes at the end
of each school day to do a stand-up comedy routine for his classmates.
The Carrey family fell on hard times and
were forced to move to the Toronto suburb of Scarborough, where they
took security and janitorial jobs in the Titan Wheels factory. Carrey
began working eight-hour shifts each day after school. Eventually, the
Carrey family adjusted by living on a relative's lawn out of the family
Volkswagen van until they could move back into town.
Carrey has been married twice, first to
Melissa Womer with whom he had a daughter, Jane, then to actress Lauren
Holly in a marriage that lasted less than a year.
More recently, Carrey became a (dual) U.S.
citizen on October 7, 2004. He went public about his bouts with
depression in a November 2004 60 Minutes interview, where he also spoke
of growing up during his family's tough times.
* * * *
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Date Article Copied:
July 12, 2005
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